A Secret Affair
by PerPoll
Summary: He is back, at last! but, where are his wife and his daughter? did they replace him already?
1. Home at last

The sun was coming down towards the horizon. Dark clouds were forming; gales of wind were whipping through the streets, dirt joining the air. Tiny specks of rain began dropping and soon it was heavily pouring; thunder roaring and lightning flashing, illuminating the whole sky eerily. People were running around frantically going to the nearest cover they see; homeless were doing what they could to shield themselves from the uncontrollable downpour of rain.

The scene before him was unbelievable. He is home, he is back. Everything looks black and white. People are moving in fast motion- passing by him not seems to be noticing him. This is what he had just expected to return to; nothing has changed. London is still the same place that he left to.

"Will I see you again sir?" the sailor boy Anthony, who found him floating in the sea and helped him restore his health back and bring him back to London asked.

"You might find me, if you like, around Fleet Street." he answered.

Anthony holds out his hand for his mysterious friend to shake "Until then, my friend." He didn't take it; instead he turns and walks down the streets.

* * *

Mrs. Lovett was in her parlor perched up in the sofa with a bottle of gin for company. She was taking a rest after a very busy day in the shop. She decided to continue the romance novel she was reading- book on the right hand and the glass of gin on the left.

It was typical to find the baker in this position. Every night, after the dinner rush she would curl up in the sofa and read her favorite book while having a drink waiting for sleep to come. This was her way of relaxation. Mrs. Lovett got tired of reading the book- Also, her eyes are hurting. So she decided to take a warm bath to relinquish the coldness off of her body due to the weather. Standing up she placed the book and the glass of gin on the table in front of her; and headed towards the kitchen to heat water for the bath and some to make tea. Knowing that it would take long for the water to boil, she went back to the parlor and chose to continue reading since she got nothing else to do. She picked up the book and eyes the bottle of gin- the alcohol was starting to take effect on her- she feels hot and since she does not want to wake up with a headache she left the gin alone.

* * *

He was soaking wet and was shivering from the rain but he does not care. He kept on walking intent to reach Fleet Street. He turns left into an alley and headed straight, after passing two blocks he turns left again and there he saw the big sign: Mrs. Lovett's Meat Pie Emporium. His heart is pounding 'this is it' he thought 'I'm going to see my wife and my child'. He ambled towards the shop and stops two feet away from the door. He couldn't do it, he was scared. Will they recognize him? Will they still accept him? His thoughts are running wild, it's making him dizzy. There are so many voices in his head and they are not helping, he cannot think clearly.

"You can do this" he mutters to himself.

* * *

There was someone knocking on the door. Mrs. Lovett tried to ignore it not wanting to be bothered by hungry customers late at night. But the knocking becomes loud and persistent and this only irritated the baker more.

"The shop's closed, just come back tomorrow!" she shouted hoping that the person outside would just go and stop bugging her. To no avail- the person kept on knocking making her furious. She marched towards the shop and forcefully thrashes the door open

"I TOLD YOU WE'RE CLO-"she was in awe. She stood there frozen mouth agape and eyes wide. Everything went silent. She can't believe what she's seeing or rather who is she seeing. It's as if she was dreaming. She pinched her cheeks to check if she was just dreaming and she's not. She opens her mouth to say something but immediately closes it not having anything to say. She stood there just staring.

As if on cue the kettle started whistling. Mrs. Lovett looks back and forth at the man in her front of her and inside her house where the kettle is on the boil, the whistling getting louder and louder each time. Confused, she closed the door and ran to the kitchen taking the kettle off of the stove and placing it on the counter. She stood there for a while, collecting her thoughts. Then she remembers the man outside. It was raining and he was drenched in water and…

"Oh gods!" Mrs. Lovett immediately runs to the door seizing it open and without thinking she yanks the man inside the shop a little forceful. The man stumbled but after a while managed to regain his footing. The baker, a little embarrassed about what she did ran out of the shop and went to her bedroom without saying anything. She opens the top drawer of her dresser and grabs a towel to give to the man.

Before facing him again she thinks about what she's going to do with him. Should she talk to him or wait for him to speak? Give the towel then leave? Ask him if he really is Benjamin Barker?

"Suppose I should ask him." She mutters to herself while traipsing towards the shop.

She found the man seated at one of the booths looking around the shop with a frown planted on his face and for a while she cannot help but stare at him. "He is still so handsome" she says in a dreamy voice.

Realizing that she's staring at him she immediately composes herself. Seeing that the man did not noticed that she's back Mrs. Lovett clears her throat to make her presence known. He looked at her, his expression turning into perplexed one. She hands him the towel which he gladly accepted. She took the seat across the man gathering all her courage to ask the question she's been meaning to ask since she saw him. Fidgeting in her seat she focused her gaze on her hands which are placed on the table.

"Areyoubenjaminbarker?" she said it very fast and above whisper. It sounded like 'areyoubenbarer' she lifted her gaze from her hands and focused it on the man in front of her. He shakes his head in negative "No, it is Todd now. Sweeney Todd."

Mrs. Lovett nodded in understanding. The man cannot just use his old name or else he will be sent back to Australia. 'Well, at least he's back' she thought, making her happy. She grins up at him ready to bombard him with questions but she stopped when he spoke.

"Where's my Lucy? Where's my wife?" Gone was the voice of him which used to be so sweet. It was now cold. 'Surely Australia made him a different person' the smile on the baker's face slowly faded and it morphed into sadness. But she quickly masked her feelings. Smiling up to him, her smile not reaching her eyes; she answered him.

"Well… you're not going to like this…"

* * *

Hi guys! so, where do you all think Lucy and Johanna is? you'll know on the next chapter ;)

leave me a review :)


	2. Home at last 2

Mrs. Lovett was squirming in her seat, glancing sideways. She was nervous- Not sure how Mr. Todd will react about knowing what happened to his wife and daughter after his arrest.

"You see Mr. Bark- Todd, after you were taken away, this man, John his name was. John Clinton. He would visit Lucy every day- bringing flowers and sometimes toys for Johanna. Every now and then they will take a stroll to the park while they leave the babe with me…"

Mrs. Lovett looks at Mr. Todd for any reaction but he doesn't show any; he remains stoic. Losing all the nervousness she continues on with her stories and began to chatter away; telling about Lucy's rendezvous with John Clinton. The baker knows everything (or at least that's what she believes) about their whereabouts because Lucy confides in her- telling her everything they do every time they would go out or every time John would visit.

While the baker was far too engrossed in her story telling, Mr. Todd was also absorbed in his own thoughts. Pain and anger filled his heart upon hearing Mrs. Lovett's stories. Pain because of how easily his wife had moved on and entertain another man just after he was gone. Didn't she tell him that she will wait for him? But what did she do instead? Go out with that… with that stupid bastard who she didn't even know! There he was at the other end of the world hoping and wishing that one day he'll come back to find his family waiting for him. Also, what of his daughter? Does Johanna even know him? Is that John Clinton can be trusted? Does he treat his Lucy and Johanna right? – Anger, anger for the man who dares to steal his wife away from him and succeeded and the man who managed to ruin his life and his family. He wasn't only talking about Clinton but he was also talking about the honorable Judge Turpin. Yes, Turpin. He would never ever forget him and one of these days he will have his revenge.

Mrs. Lovett noticed that Mr. Todd was not listening to her anymore with the way he was staring at the table, smiling deviously.

"Mr. Todd, are you listening?" Luckily he was able to catch what Mrs. Lovett was asking him so he nodded while muttering "continue" reminding himself to ask her about Judge Turpin too.

"… So this continued on for months… then, a year after, Lucy came to me one day and told me that they were leaving. She said that John asked her to live with him. They will start a new family; she didn't want Johanna growing up without a father. I asked her if she was sure of her decision; she said yes and that I should not worry about them because John is really kind."

"Where can I find them?" he asked, wanting so badly to see his family and also to clear things out.

"I really don't know where they live Mr. Todd, Lucy never told me. But, I see her sometimes in the market mostly during Tuesdays. Never asked her where they live and I don't really have the chance to talk to her; she always leaves in a hurry." She answered. She just thought now why she didn't even bother to ask Lucy where they were staying. 'Oh well, there's always next time'.

Silence reigns between the two, making the baker uncomfortable while Mr. Todd seems unaffected; clearly, he was in deep thought. Having the urge to talk just to break the dead air Mrs. Lovett speaks.

"What's your plan now Mr. Todd?"

Lifting his gaze from the table and locking eyes with the baker Mr. Todd replies with a smirk and evil glint in his eyes.

"Oh I have lots of plans, Mrs. Lovett. You'll see." Shivers run through her spine as he says this. She was thinking of what was going through the man's mind. She had a bad feeling that whatever his plans were they were not good- She hopes that he would not do anything rash and stupid unless he wants to go back again to Australia. 'Surely he won't go out and about killing people' she snorted at this; Mr. Todd mistaking it as her agreement in his unsaid plans- But whatever he'd be doing he will have her full support.

"Mrs. Lovett…" he suddenly speaks.

"Yes, Mr. Todd?"

"What happened to the Judge?" going through their conversations Mrs. Lovett thought that it would be better if they would just continue their talk tomorrow when they have all the time-Unlike now it's already past midnight and the baker needs to wake up early to open the shop- Because if they don't turn in for the night she knows that Mr. Todd would be asking her a lot of questions which will lead them to talking all night till morning. So she decided to voice her opinion.

"Mr. Todd, I think we should get you settled; we'll talk tomorrow. I'm also rather tired, alright?" The look on Mr. Todd's face was of pure disappointment. He has a lot of questions that needs answers. Besides, he knows that he won't be able to sleep. In Australia he must always be alert- from his cell mates attack to the filthy creatures who managed to eat some of them. He only gets a few hours of sleep and this only happens when he is really tired but in those few hours he is tormented by nightmares- from the bad things that happened to him and he witnessed- but although he can't sleep or doesn't sleep it does not mean other people don't too, especially the woman in front of him who is now yawning and eyes drooping low.

He nodded and they both stand up. The towel falls from his shoulder and it was then that he noticed that he was still drenched in water; as the realization dawns on him, coldness slowly creeps into his body making him shiver. Noticing this Mrs. Lovett grabs Mr. Todd by the hand and pulls him into the parlor she then pushed him to the sofa which was located in front of the fire place.

"Warm your bones dear, while I get clothes for you." Mrs. Lovett leaves the parlor heading to the spare room (stock room, really.) where she keeps all of Albert her late husband's things. Reaching the room she then crawls under the bed pulling with her a chest. She opens it- it is full of Albert's old clothes. She grabs a pair of trousers and shirt which were definitely too big for Mr. Todd- Albert is a very big man. "It'll do, just for tonight." She mutters to herself while examining the clothes. She strode out of the room and went back to the parlor.

Mr. Todd's back was turned from Mrs. Lovett, not noticing her when she entered the parlor. That's why when she speaks he gave a slight jump, obviously startled by the baker's presence. But, he immediately composes himself.

"Sorry to scare you dear, here are your clothes." She handed the clothes to him; giving him a tired smile. He held the clothes in front of him noticing that they were too big for him. He gives her a disapproving look.

Mrs. Lovett sighs, eyes drooping lowly if possible "I know dear, just for tonight." He drops the clothes in his lap, shoulders hunching forward looking defeated. Then he murmurs an "alright."

"You can sleep here Mr. Todd and tomorrow I can show you the apartment upstairs." He grunted in reply.

"Alright, good night dear." Mrs. Lovett taps Mr. Todd at the shoulder then ambles towards her bedroom giving him a second look. Too tired from the night's events, when she reached her bedroom she collapses in her bed not even having the energy to change- she immediately falls asleep.

* * *

The story's going slow... be patient ;)

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thanks thelovelyflorencelovett for your review :))))


	3. Job and Judge

The next morning, Mrs. Lovett found herself in the kitchen- humming a very cheerful tune while preparing breakfast for her and her newest company: Sweeney Todd. She was serving fried eggs and toasts. She feels stupid for not giving him any food or even offers a drink last night. 'He must be starving' she thought to herself. Grabbing two plates from the cupboard she then places the food in it, putting it in a tray to bring in the shop, where Mr. Todd was seated- at the booth close to the door.

"Here you go, love" she pushes the plate in front of Mr. Todd and puts hers across him as she takes the seat in front of him. He looks at the food disinterestedly- After 15 years, it's only today that he was given a proper meal; in prison they were only given breads- moldy breads. He will not eat these breads out of repulsion; he will only eat these when he cannot take the starvation anymore- and so, seeing the toasts makes his stomach lurch. Remembering the food they were given before. Mrs. Lovett, noticing the looks that he was giving the food asks him, giving Mr. Todd a worried look.

"Don't you want it, Mr. T? I know it's not much but I can cook another if you like."

"No" shaking his head in negative Mr. Todd grabs the fork and scoop some of the eggs, he then slowly brings it up but stopping an inch away into his mouth to look at it- Hesitating if he should really eat it or not- looking at it as though it will bite him instead of him biting it. Deciding to eat it just as though not to upset the baker he brings the food into his mouth- he was waiting for the revolting taste of the food to come but it did not. Instead, he was welcomed by the familiar taste of egg which he thinks is not bad.

Both finished their breakfast, satisfied- Though Mr. Todd only ate the eggs- Mrs. Lovett clears away their plate putting it in the sink to wash for later.

"Let's go, Mr. T, I'll show you upstairs." She grabs the key on the back of the door on their way out. They climbed the stairs outside with him behind her, trailing. Reaching the top step Mrs. Lovett opens the apartment, the bell on top of the door clinging as she makes her way in. she went to the window overlooking the gloomy streets of London- the apartment was clean but there's no sign that someone has lived in it- she then faces Mr. Todd who was still standing outside taking his surroundings in, a scowl planted on his face.

Mrs. Lovett motions for him to get inside "Come on dear, nothing to be afraid of."

Memory comes flooding Mr. Todd as he first step foot in the apartment. It was as if he was sucked by a time machine and was brought to the day where he, _they_, used to live in this house. He can see himself arriving from work and Lucy seating by the vanity brushing her yellow hair. The way her face would beam- eyes widen with large smile planted on her face- as she abandons the brush upon noticing his arrival; the feeling of her soft lips on his right cheek while she takes his coat off hanging it by the chair nearby- his hands snaking around her waist then climbing up to feel her swollen belly. Her giggles when he would sneak a kiss on her lips, then the kiss would travel further down, to her collar bone… to her…

Mr. Todd gave a startled jump as he was pulled back to the present by the annoyed baker who was standing before him, probably getting his attention for a while now- 'of course, all is too good to be true.'- he sighs as he listens to Mrs. Lovett, scolding him for not paying attention to her- He was just here over a night and she was already starting to get under his skin by her incessant chatters.

"…I don't know if you even hear me Mr. T. it's rude you know…"

And out of all what Mrs. Lovett was saying he finally cuts her off too tired to listen to her for she was just repeating what she was saying over and over again as if he doesn't bloody understand her.

"I need a job" he deadpans.

This put a halt to the baker's prattling "W-what?" Mrs. Lovett looks at him blinking fast and mouth slightly open

"To pay you" he continues

"But- but... Mr. Todd, it's okay, really. No need to pay me." Says Mrs. Lovett as she puts her hand at the man's shoulder giving him assurance that he doesn't really need to pay her. 'Anything for you, my love' she thought.

"No." he answers with finality on his voice. Mrs. Lovett sighs- he's right, she doesn't expect him to sit all day doing nothing and wait for a miracle to happen, right? Yes, he needs a job, indeed. Besides she needs extra income as the money that she's earning from her shop is enough only for her daily needs. Now that there are two of them she won't have enough.

"Of course" she conceded. She thinks of a job that will suit Sweeney Todd the best and since she doesn't know what he would like as a job, she based her assumptions on what would Benjamin Barker want; she can only think of one: Barbering- Back in the days, Benjamin Barker was the best barber in town He attracts a lot of customers due to his talented hands and his charm.

"How about, you open your shop again? You're one of the best you know Mr. T" she said suggestively. Wiggling her eyebrows up and down with a grin planted on her face. Her facial expression then changes- her eyes widen as if she remembers something- then she hurriedly left, leaving Mr. Todd in the middle of the room.

Ignoring the baker and her silly antics, Mr. Todd went to stand by the window, his right hand placed on top of the window sill while the other was on his waist. Just as he was about to slip again into reverie Mrs. Lovett comes, bursting in. Her hand planted on her hips while clutching a velveteen box and the other on her chest steadying her breathing. Finally, as her breathing went back to normal she approaches Mr. Todd handling him the box.

The box was familiar to him. He's seen it before but, he's just not sure where. Slowly he opens the box and seven silver chased razors were revealed to him. He fingers them slowly and grabs one, opening it. _My friends,_ the feeling of the razor in his hand is not foreign rather it feels like something in him was completed. He traces the intricate design of the glimmering razor, admiring it. He was so entranced by the beauty which it possesses; he holds it up to his face seeing his reflection in it and as he tilted it to the side the reflection of his forgotten company- Mrs. Lovett- who in return was also captivated, not by the razors, no, but him.

"Beautiful" she breathed. He can feel her breath at the side of his neck- she was so close to him. For a second he thought he saw her eyes flicker to him while she says this but brush it off- the close proximity is making him uncomfortable so he ordered her to leave. He decides that there's plenty of time to talk later but right now he just need this time to be alone with his friends.

"Leave" he says without looking at her; his eyes fixed at the razor. She left without saying a word only glancing back at him while she closes the door quietly as not to break the momentum.

Mrs. Lovett dashes downstairs allowing Mr. Todd the peace he needs- having been reunited by his so called friends. She cannot help but feel a twinge of jealousy, the razors was welcomed warmly but she... she sighs shaking her head.

She went to the kitchen and grabs a bottle of gin and a glass from the cupboard. She will not open the shop for the day- she deserves a day off. Walking towards the parlor she plopped down on her favorite sofa. She will plan the re-opening of the barbershop. A smile crept into her face- she loves these kinds of things planning, business, promoting… she has lots of ideas. She will post flyers everywhere; she will fix the room- put on cheery wallpaper, chair, flowers- gillyflowers or daisies, replace the broken mirror, etc… she can only hope that Mr. Todd would agree with her.

* * *

She must have fallen asleep- she found herself lying on the sofa still clutching the glass of gin. She got up to see that the sun was already replaced by the moon and the stars.

"Damn it" she went straight to the kitchen to prepare dinner. While cooking she wonders what Mr. Todd was doing upstairs. 'He must be sleeping'. Then her mind wanders off to Lucy. She cannot remember when she last saw her but it's been quite a while. She saw her with John. She cannot help but think what an odd couple the two are. The two don't link arms as they walk, doesn't talk much, they seem uncomfortable with each other's presence, aloof… there are just so many things that when you see them you would not think of them as couple. 'Maybe they are going on a rough patch' she thought. She prepares the food to be brought upstairs.

Mrs. Lovett climbs the stairs, the tray balance on one hand and the other lifting her skirt as not to trip. She reaches the top stairs and knocks at the door, letting herself inside the room, not waiting for an answer. Mr. Todd was standing by the window; he did not acknowledge her presence.

"Brought you some dinner, love" she puts the tray on the vanity and walks towards him stopping by his side. He cast her side glance.

"The Judge" It was all he says but she knows what he wants. He wants her to tell him about Judge Turpin.

"Say, how about we talk downstairs?" she took him by his shoulders and guides him to the door "Go, love" he went down while she was left behind to retrieve the dinner that she brought him. She enters the shop and she sees that he was already seated at one of the tables.

"Here, Mr. T" she pushes the tray towards him but he refuses to eat. He just sat there waiting for Mrs. Lovett to begin her story. She shakes her head as she makes herself comfortable in her seat.

"So, the day Ben was taken away…" he flinches at the name and this goes unnoticed.

"…Lucy went home looking very devastated; she was crying uncontrollably, on her side was Turpin… holding the babe- Johanna…" Mr. Todd can feel the anger bubbling up inside him. 'How dare he touch my daughter' he fought to remain calm and listen to Mrs. Lovett.

"…Lucy went straight here; she was telling me what happened. I took Johanna from Turpin and asked him to leave. He did not. He grabbed Lucy by the shoulders and seated her while he murmurs comforting words to her. I was about to ask him to leave again but I see that he was able to calm Lucy…" at this Mr. Todd bangs his fist at the table frightening the baker. He growls. Mrs. Lovett waited for him to calm down to continue.

"A-after making sure Lucy's fine, he left. Never came back." Mr. Todd scowl went even deeper if that's even possible- he is not sure if he heard the baker right. 'Never came back?' she must be mistaken.

Mrs. Lovett sensing the uncertainty in Mr. Todd continues. "Yes, the bastard never came back. I was even surprised that he did not send away John for courting Lucy. Surely he must know about John's." she was waiting for any reaction from him. He did not speak, he just sits there. She was about to reach out a hand to him but he stands up and went upstairs.

The baker shrugs and eats her dinner. She then proceeds to wash the dishes.

As the two settles in for the night they were both plague by the nagging question in their mind.

What's the reason of the judge for sending Barker away?

* * *

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Next chapter maybe you'll meet John :D

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	4. A Stolen Chance and A Stolen Razor

It has been a week since the grand re-opening of Sweeney Todd's tonsorial parlor. Mrs. Lovett was having a very busy day- Ever since the grand re-opening of the barbershop it seems like people started to notice her bakeshop more. She was more than happy, of course, now that the business is booming; but, considering that she was alone- with no one to help her in serving those customers- at the end of the day she feels like she's going to collapse.

"Oi, Miss! Where's my order?" shouted an angry customer from the back.

Mrs. Lovett's patience was wearing thin- this brute- she just explained to him how he will need to wait for a few minutes to get his order because the pie was still cooking, kept on shouting, wanting his bloody pie.

"OI, I SAID WHERE'S MY PIE!?" the man shouted again but this time he was banging his cup on the table, creating unpleasant noises.

Mrs. Lovett cannot contain herself anymore- she marches towards the man glaring daggers at him then she shouts back jabbing her fingers at the man's chest "I TOLD YOU TO WAIT FOR A FEW MINUTES TO GET YOUR ORDER DIDN'T I? NOW, IF YOU CANNOT WAIT AND YOU'RE GONNA COMPLAIN ABOUT IT ALL DAY WELL THEN YOU ARE FREE TO GET OUT OF MY SHOP, NOW!"

The look on the bastard's face was priceless- he was shocked- he stares open mouthed at the baker before he stands up and prepares to leave muttering an apology on his way to the door; and it's as if nothing had happened Mrs. Lovett puts a smile on her face then asks

"Who's in for a pie?"

* * *

Upstairs, Mr. Todd also has a lot of customers. He just finishes shaving a gentleman when another one comes in.

"Sit sir, sit" beckons Mr. Todd at the man.

The man sits and makes himself comfortable while Mr. Todd takes his coat and his hat placing it on a nearby table.

"Just a shave, sir" the man says as he closes his eyes and tilts his head back, giving the barber a better angle to shave his face.

As Mr. Todd starts shaving, the man speaks "A friend of mine says that you're the best barber in town, Mr. Todd. You know, I was once a barber like you but, bigger opportunity came and I took it."

Though he doesn't want to converse with his customers, Mr. Todd doesn't have a choice. If he's going to be rude, no one would want to go to his shop. "If I may, what do you do for a living sir?"

"I work for the judge now." The man states nonchalantly.

"Oh" was the only word Mr. Todd could utter- he was surprised by the man's revelation. He decides to ask the man about Turpin but when he was about to speak he was cut off.

"Judge Turpin is a really good person. He helped me and my family a lot, without him we would be nothing." The man says with a gleam in his eyes.

Mr. Todd remains silent- he cannot process what the man was saying. 'Judge? A good person? Maybe, Turpin pays this man a lot of money for him to say he was a good person.' He thinks.

Before he knows it he was done shaving the man. The man pays him and bids him good bye. Once gone, Mr. Todd sighs- he just missed his chance asking the man about the judge.

* * *

Mrs. Lovett casts a glance at the stairs and saw the barber's customer was leaving. 'Strange, he looks familiar'. She takes a look at the man again and she finds out why the man looks so familiar. She hurriedly runs towards the barbershop.

"Mr. Todd!" she was panting, catching her breath "that… that man…John… Clinton!"

Mr. Todd cannot understand what she was saying so he grabs her shoulders then directed her to sit towards the barber's chair "Calm down, Mrs. Lovett."

The baker took her time trying to even out her breathing. Seeing that Mrs. Lovett was now breathing normally, the barber asks her. "You're saying?"

"That man- your customer that had just left, He was John Clinton!"

Mr. Todd stands there for a moment contemplating what the baker was talking about. 'Who's John Clinton?' he muses. Then reality hits him- he dashes towards the door intending to catch the man who apparently, his wife chooses to replace him with.

He does not know where John headed but, fortunately he sees him walking down the road which leads to the market. Sweeney runs- determined to catch the man who was twenty feet away from him. John walks fast and it makes it hard for the barber to follow him even though he was running. The man turns right and that's where Mr. Todd lost him- _The Market_. He reaches the market where John headed. Unluckily, the place was crowded. He walks past the people tearing the whole crowd in hopes to find John but he was unsuccessful.

Mr. Todd has no choice but to go home and waits for John to come back to his barbershop again. He walks angrily back to Fleet Street muttering curses under his breath. He was not paying attention on where he was going then suddenly he collided with someone. It was a boy- he was scrawny and he seems homeless. Anger getting the best out of him he glares at the boy- who looks scared and was apologizing to him. He ignores the boy then he continues to walk on his way home.

Halfway, Mr. Todd notices that his razor was missing. He stops walking and thinks for a while if he just forgot it at home but then he remembers putting it in his holster. Suddenly, realization dawns on him- the boy! He spans around and there he finds the boy talking to a gentleman. 'Probably another one of his victims'

He shouts while running towards the direction of the boy pointing his finger at him. "You, boy!"

The boy slowly turns around and upon seeing Mr. Todd he runs as fast as he can while shouting. "Help me!"

Luckily, there weren't many people in the area, so the barber chases the boy. He noticed that they were already in Fleet Street and the boy was heading towards Mrs. Lovett's pie shop. He smirks thinking 'Wrong move, lad'

The boy was panicking, the man was catching up on him and he has to find a way to get the man to leave him. That's where he finds the baker. He runs towards Mrs. Lovett as he tugs her skirt begging "Ma'am, please, Help me."

Mrs. Lovett jumps, startled by the boy's sudden presence. She pries his hands away from her skirt and kneels down asking "What is it?"

The boy points to the right "that man, he was coming after me."

Looking, Mrs. Lovett saw that it was Mr. Todd that the boy was pointing at. She cocks her head to the side- confused as to why Mr. Todd was chasing the boy. The barber reaches them and without warning he grabs the boy by his collar and drags him upstairs.

"No! Please help me!" shouts the boy while struggling to get out of the barber's grip.

Mrs. Lovett was at lost as to what was happening so she just follows Mr. Todd upstairs in his barbershop.

Reaching the barbershop, Mr. Todd let go of the boy, throwing him into the chair. He was hovering over the boy glaring daggers at him- the boy was cowering in fear.

Mrs. Lovett stands beside Mr. Todd placing her hand at the barber's shoulder "Now, Mr. T, why don't you calm down, love. Tell me, what did he do to you?"

"He stole my razor" Mr. Todd says. He looks like a boy telling his mother that someone had stolen his candy.

"That ain't true ma'am! He dropped it and I was gonna return it to him but the man talked to me and so I wasn't able to return it immediately." the boy explains.

Seeing that the boy seems to be telling the truth Mrs. Lovett says "Come on Mr. T, just get your razor back and leave the child alone."

Mr. Todd considers protesting but thought better of it he simply turns around and walks, stopping by the window- looking outside the streets of London.

Mrs. Lovett kneels in front of the chair and smiles at the boy "Now, what's your name lad?"

The boy looks down and murmurs his name "Toby"

She places his hand on Toby's lap and asks him "Toby, why don't you give back Mr. T's razor?" she stands up and nods towards him.

Toby casts a glance at Mr. Todd then looks at Mrs. Lovett- worried expression painted on his face.

The baker waves her hand motioning for Toby to stand up "Come on, it's alright. Stand up. Give it to him."

He slowly stands up and fishes the razor out of his pocket then he makes his way towards Mr. Todd.

"Sir, here's your razor" he hands out the razor to the barber. Mr. Todd looks at Toby with a scowl on his face. He yanks his razor out of Toby then went back to looking out the window.

The boy moves away to stand at the baker's side. He looks at her then says "thank you, ma'am"

"It's nothing, dearie." Replies the baker as she takes the boy's hand "Come with me down stairs and we'll get you something to eat." Toby beams up at this and follows Mrs. Lovett.

As the two went downstairs, Mr. Todd was left alone to think about his second arch enemy- first would be the Judge- John Clinton.

* * *

this is a lame chapter, forgive me. -_-

and yes, John works for the Judge ;)

leave me a review ^_^


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